Canada should aim to double the amount of international students in the country by 2022 in order to boost jobs over the next 10 years, according to a federal government report released Aug. 14.
The task force behind the 122-page report, led by Western University president Amit Chakma, proposed a total of 14 recommendations in order to achieve its vision of making Canada a “21st century leader in international education.”
The primary recommendation of the report, titled International Education a Key Driver of Canada’s Future Prosperity, suggests that Ottawa double the number of full-time international students ranging from kindergarten through grade 12 and post-secondary institutions, from 239,130 as reported in 2011, to 450,000 by 2022.
The panel called this a “realistic goal” given its assessment that “Canada’s education systems have the capacity to absorb new international students without displacing domestic students.”
These suggested policies are designed to combat the “severe shortage of skilled labour” Canada will face within at least 10 years, the report indicates, adding that “international recruitment strategies targeting both the quantity and quality of talent are needed.”
Promoting Canadian education aboard should be focused on regions with the highest growth potential, including China, India, Brazil, Vietnam and Mexico, as well as Middle Eastern and North African countries too, the panel said.
Other recommendations of the report included introducing a program, co-funded by the federal government, for 50,000 Canadian students per year to study abroad as part of cultural exchanges.
“We also see a role for the private sector to encourage Canadian students to become global citizens,” the panel wrote. “Canadian students are powerful ambassadors that can market opportunities to study in Canada to their fellow students abroad.”
The panel also recommends the government incorporate education in Canada as a strategic component of its Economic Action Plan, its international trade and innovation strategies, and its immigration and foreign policies.
Attracting international students to Canada is beneficial due to the added “economic prosperity and social fabric,” according to Vinitha Gengatharan, director of international initiatives at the University of Toronto (U of T).
She says U of T is home to 8,500 undergraduate international students and an additional 2,000 in graduate programs.
“Students who study here and decide to stay make for high-value immigrants and are set to contribute to the economy,” Gengatharan said.
“Many of these students bring a new perspective to innovation [and] tackling problems in ways that complement the traditional approaches.”
Even if these students opt to return home after completing their education, their Canadian ties can help Canada foster further economic and political relations with their home countries in the future, the report said.
“If students decide to return to their home countries, they are prepared and eager to capitalize on the relationships forged while in Canada to build collaborations in business and research,” Gengatharan said.
“They also become brand ambassadors for the quality of Canadian education.”
Marko Jeremic, an international student from Japan in his second year of environmental studies at Carleton, said that while he does not yet know whether he will stay in Canada after he graduates, it is a possibility he is definitely considering.
“I’ve learned a lot at Carleton about Canada and its culture not only through classes, but through the people that are at the school as well,” he said.
“It’s a very welcoming school for international students.”
